King Eodred II has died, Geadren Lamm brought to 'justice', riots were quelled, an 'Assassin' caught and later rescued by a local vigilante, and the body of a missing Shoanti retrieved from dark passages. Now all that's left for the hapless heroes is to lie down and get some much needed time off. I wonder how long it will last.
Apparently not long, Felgar searches out Neva immediately to see if she cxan help.
Ma'am, I be ailin', can ya help?
Took Cleave as Bonus Feat
Added rank to Perception and Knowledge (Dungeoneering)
Added Ability Point to STR
Neva is able to tell that one of Felgar's injuries from the carrion golem seems to have gotten infected. Nothing more than what could be expected down in the depravity of the warren, he looks to have a nasty case of filth fever.
Later in the same day, someone else comes looking for members of the group. She is almost unrecognizable, being all cleaned up, and in better spirits. It is the woman, Alana, that you all rescued from Cabbagehead's pits. "You were so brave down there, and I owe you so much gratitude. I cannot offer much in the way of money, but I do have this." She holds out a long slender wand, made of birch. "It is magical, I know that much. I wanted to give it to you, because it is what I have left of my old life. Stealing is what got me into the mess I was in, and I'm going to turn my life around."
Filth Fever...jeez. Thanks Mi'lady. Anythin' you can do t'help is a blessin'.
Fort:
Copper accepts the wand graciously. "We are very honored by your gift, miss, though I am happy to here about the new leaf you are turning. May the gods look favorably upon you. And if you need any more help, come find us."
After Alana leaves, Copper hands the wand over to Neva, "It is a healing wand of moderate strength. This could come in very handy in the future."
Copper returns to his own abode, though he tells the others how and where to find him should they need him.
Rutter stays at Zellara's over the next few days. In the evenings, he spends a lot of time running through the more convoluted passages among the Shingles. The practice pays off, as he can tell that his agility has improved. Maybe next time he won't get slammed when he tries to sidestep some lumbering beast. If there is a next time. He struggles with the decision to spend some of his money. It was a nice little run of jobs, but he doubts he'll be called upon again, so there's no point in throwing away coin on equipment he'll never use. Still, it doesn't hurt to stay in contact with some of his "friends" so he chats one up about the little chemical tricks that he supplies, and buys a few to garner goodwill. After that, his spending mood continues, and he acquires that sap he was missing on one of those jobs. He swings back by Zellara's to stash his new gear, and then goes to a halfling-friendly brothel to spend a little more coin.
Pravlox relaxes a bit around the barracks, doing as much shopping as his funds allow, but otherwise doing little but keeping Felgar's spirits up until he can rid himself of the last remnants of the last adventure, training with Rex, doing his various other sundry duties that come up around the barracks, and otherwise simply relaxing and being amazed at his change of fortunes in the last few weeks.
By the second day Felgar has recovered some from his nasty infection, but he can tell it may take a little more time for it to be out of his system fully. He got his bearings back, but he is still suffering an upset stomach.
Pravlox however, seems to be coming down with what was afflicting Felgar. It didn't hit you quite as hard, a little dizziness, which in turn makes you nauseous, more like a heavy case of the spins.
Copper discovers with a little investigation, that the blue liquid is actually Blue Whinnis poison, about enough for five doses.
Prav, I appreciate ya' stickin' around t'cheer me up!
Felgar will continue with bed rest to heal up.
Copper stays home for a few days, trying to stay out of sight as much as possible, in case anyone wants to come cast blame on him or his friends for how events went at the sentencing.
During the time, he spends much time deep in thought, mentally working through the steps in some spells he thinks he can make a reality, if he could just figure out the right command words.
He awakes one morning to find his bedshets with multiple burn holes in them and the floor of the room covered in a thin sheet of grease. Rolling over, he discovers the runic fire on his skin has changed slightly. The fire almost seems to be growing from his ring. The designs that had been on the back of his left hand now stretch up to the middle of his forearm, as if they are slowly consuming his body.
Pravlox also simply rests for the entire day, not overly happy, but having dealt worse under far less pleasant conditions, so not particularly worried or upset either. In fact, he spends most of the time sleeping, being far to used to the ravages of disease and sickness of all kinds to be overly bothered by the side effects.
The down time seems filled with illness and ministrations from Neva, but Felgar and Pravlox are not the last of it. On the third day, Rutter also falls prey to infection. Rutter's infection also surround the scars of his injuries from the golem. Pravlox is the exception, as his emanates from where the otyugh had bit into him.
Over the next couple days it seems to plague the three of them off an on.
Day 5:
Day 6:
Day 7:
Ok, looks like I made the check each day. Thus, everyone gets +4 to their fort saves, which (for instance) should give Felgar two consecutive saves on days 6 and 7. I think the aid on day 4 cures Pravlox.
I'll also roll for Long Term Care for each day
Doh. Missed days 6 and 7, so folks will only heal 2pts of ability damage those days. So, assuming Felgar takes some ability damage on day 5, he'll have 2 points of healing on each of days 6 and 7. And Pravlox should have everything back by day 7.
Neva spent most of her time caring for her companions, moving to and from Zellara's to the other residences as needed. When she could, she plopped her tired bones into a chair at Zellara's for some rest and to contemplate.
As usual, she found her thoughts moving towards introspection and prayer, and she would eventually convert these prayers to written form, invoking Pharasma's blessing on each. Her experiences under the Gray weighed heavily on her. Soon, she had a small sheaf of papers which she delicately bound in soft twine and placed in her prayer pouch.
Blowing out the latest candle, she made ready for bed, hoping the sickness of the foul crypts was finally healed.
After a week of Neva's ministrations, everyone affected is drained from the disease's stay. Neva is weary of tending the three, as much as the other three are spent from their bodies trying to fight the infection. There seems to be a bit of a buzz going about of some event happening up in the waters near North bridge and the part just on the outskirts of the city known as Trail's End. Given the way word travels around the city, it's tough to tell what is fact and what is overexcited gossip. The story seems to range from a great sea monster ravaging the city side and the guard, to a ship going under. There's word of a great battle, to no one being around and a dinghy taking on water. It seems that since the city has died down, some people may just be looking for that little extra excitement back.
Rutter wakes with a cold sweat on day 4. The redness around his healing wounds encourages him to seek out Neva. She can't convince him to stay in bed, either at the temple or at Zellara's house, but his fever breaks after the second day of affliction. His body still feels stiff and sore, but he just takes it easy for the next couple days, staying off the Shingles and hiring only one lady at the brothel.
Talk among ladies and other patrons in the brothel parlor room about the happenings up near the north bridge pique Rutter's curiosity. He seeks out Copper and Neva to see if they'd like to go check it out.
Though weary in body, Pravlox is upbeat, having used the time to strengthen himself mentally, and overall just glad he was no longer on the streets, where that would have been much harder to shake off. Still, seven days is more than enough time to sleep, and he is eager to be up and about again. Talk of what is happening up on the north bridge catches his attention, and he suggests to Felgar it might be a fun little excursion after their week of rest.
Neva smiled at Rutter's curiosity, but felt the group should go together. Korvosa hadn't been the safest place of late, and if the rumors turned out to be something dangerous, well, they should all be together.
As they gathered to go, Neva checked on each of her former charges and Rutter, too.
"Pravlox, finish your food, you're thin as a rail. Rutter, button your shirt all the way up, it's damp outside. Felgar, you've got something in your beard...right there. You got it. Copper..." she looked him up and down, "...you look very nice."
Giving one more look around the room to make sure everything was in its place, Neva took a deep breath in through her nose and let it out with a sigh.
"I'm ready."
Copper blushes a bit at the compliment, making an effort to keep his left hand and forearm, now even more covered with a tatoo of runic fire, from view.
Pravlox just kind of shrugs his shoulders at Neva's comment. "You're starting to sound as bad as Rex, although you at least aren't saying stuff like that when my dining is restricted to the garbage dump. So, anyone know any details about this supposed battle, or we going in blind?"
As the group gets to asking around the folk living in North Point district, and some of the guards on duty, they pick up a little information. For the most part they don't get much of anything substantial beyond the fact that an order was given to fire upon a light on the water. With a little more cajoling, there's probably a little more that could be learned, but you'd still have to separate the wheat from the chaff of the tales.
"Apparently, a ship sailed into the river and refused both inspection and to make its intentions known. The watch fired on the ship and sank it. The odd part was that none of the guardsmen who signaled or shouted out to the ship received a response. It was like there was no on board at all."
I be not much fer swimmin'. How do we investigate that boat without divin'?
"Rutter, button your shirt all the way up, it's damp outside."
Rutter gives Neva a dirty look. "We ain't going to see the queen!" He leaves his shirt unbuttoned.
Rutter rejoins the group after they've split up a ways to ask around. "Yeah, that's what I got, too. Its sailors probably just weren't responding, though. I mean, why would you sink a ship if you thought no one was on it? At least board it first. See if it's got any loot..."
At Felgar's suggestion, Rutter replies, "Meh. I'm curious. But I doubt it's worth the trouble. Odds are against it being loaded with gold or anything else worthwhile."
After only a few hours of asking around, you guys get the spin of what happened, and have most of the rest of the day to get anything you want done. Now that everyone has gotten over their illness, it's the first day you've all been well enough, or not too busy tending them, to really have free time together.
Pravlox is uneasy about the news that no response came from the ship. "Your statements assume that there were sailors on board and/or nothing else. With all the troubles the city has had lately. I would say that both are dangerous assumptions. As for investigation, I would say the best place to start would be to find out the name of the ship and search for any records, owners, sailors who may have sailed on it, or anything else related to it that you folks can think of. Clearly, the place to start is finding the name of the vessel. Perhaps we should split up into two groups. Rutter and I can handle the rougher groups, the raw sailors and their haunts, while the rest of you handle the selling of the loot and the higher end folks and establishments."
Maybe we oughta be stickin' together, Prav.
"Let's go together to see what's actually happening at the site. That's where the latest information is likely to be. And we're certainly likely to get the name of the ship, which will be the first step in any research."
Again, M'Lady, I be havin' yer back.
You make your way to the edge of town overlooking the Jeggare river. You are allowed to climb to the top of Eodred's wall, facing the opposite bank where the suburb Trail's End sits across the water. Looking toward the depths of the river itself, there is no sign of a ship anywhere to be found. This could range from various factors, the most obvious being the tan color of the muddy waters of the Jeggare. There is also the depth of the river itself to take into account, which could run anywhere from fifty to one-hundred ten feet deep based on the part of the river you're looking at. If there is a ship in those waters it is hidden from any casual viewing. Whatever happened the other night looks as if it will go the way of "out of sight out of mind".
Well here we be, an' like I said, divin' appears t'be the only way t'get a better look.
"Before we jump in ourselves...Pravlox, do you hold favor with any kind of creature that might be able to swim down to take a look for us?"
Copper is able to get the names of those on duty during the events, and in seeking them out to gather a first hand account, you learn that one of them is a guard you had previously spoken to about the events of last night.
Neva eyed the water nervously. "'Jump in ourselves?'"
"I don't see the point honestly of worrying about the ship itself at this point. Maybe if we can find out some more details, and it proves a worthy project, I can send an elemental or something similar down there, but it just doesn't seem to be the most profitable line of inquiry at this time."
"Well, I'm certainly in favor of postponing a swim" Neva said hopefully. Turning to Pravlox she asked, "Where do you suggest we go next? We don't know the name of the ship, yet we've spoken to the guard, people on the street, sailors and what not. Who else might have some information?"
"Yeah, it's an odd story. I don't know how a ship would sail in without sailors... but I don't really care. A job for the Pathfinders, maybe!" Rutter chuckles. He's heard of the Pathfinders, but he always took the stories as fiction and the group as mythical.
"I suppose I can send an elemental down to the name of the ship if no one else took note of it and do a quick search to confirm or deny the presence of a crew. Without that, we are going to have some difficulty doing any kind of investigation. Still, I would rather keep my abilities quiet when in public as much as possible, given the current climate, and people's general reaction to Rex." Pravlox moves off to a quieter section of the shore near the ship before summoning a water elemental to go down and find out the name, and check to see if there is a crew, and if so, in what condition they are in.
After receiving his summon's report, Pravlox thanks it, and releases it back to where it came from. After all, he knew well enough the scourge of serving a thankless master, and being rude was simply unnecessary. "Hmm, not a good time for a swim anyway. Seems a shark is about. But no crew, as the stories suggest; an odd case to be sure. Still, there was a name. Direption. Even if nothing comes of exploring the ship, perhaps we can use it as an excuse to schmooze with the guards and catch any gossip on any updates on post would-be-execution reactions from the powers-that-be."
"I wonder if the ship has ever made port here before, or if anyone would know the ship by name or reputation."
"Hmm, ok. Let's find out more about the failed execution, then."
A small, almost giddy smile spread on Neva's face
"That Blackjack fellow was very dashing, wasn't he?" she asked no one in particular. "To swoop in like that and save a woman facing death? So gallant!"